Series | Antiquity Studies
Edited book | Wine Cultures
Chapter | Wine, Women and Royalty in Gandhāra
Wine, Women and Royalty in Gandhāra
Abstract
Curtius Rufus (8.10.34‑36) narrates that when Alexander the Great had conquered the city of Massaga, which was the capital of the kingdom of the Assacenians, queen Cleophis presented herself to the conqueror with a retinue of noblewomen who libated wine from golden cups: in this way she managed to maintain her kingdom. Beyond the fictional episode that is analysed as a ‘cultural representation’, the paper investigates the plausibility of the ritual act that the text reports, i.e., the libation of wine through peculiar precious vessels (paterae or phialai – often inscribed), in the historical context of Greater Gandhāra and, more in general, in the ‘Indo-Iranian frontier’, in connection with royalty and the presence of women of rank. Research shows that the connection between these elements is functional to the ostentation of prestige by elites, and to the recognition of kingship: the possession and use of gold libation cups is a characteristic of sovereignty, a speaking symbol for both Indians and Greeks.
Submitted: May 15, 2024 | Accepted: June 3, 2024 | Published Oct. 8, 2024 | Language: en
Keywords Alexander the Great • Swat • Indo-Greeks • Phialai • Greater Gandhāra • Wine libation • Paterae • Scythians • Indo-Scythians • Queen Cleophis • Curtius Rufus • Assacenians
Copyright © 2024 Claudia Antonetti. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/978-88-6969-816-3/010
